Method of forming a draft passage in the end of a cigar



New. 23, 1937; H. PRAGER 2,099,963

METHOD OF FORMING A DRAFT PASSAGE IN THE END OF A CIGAR Original Filed Oct. 16, 1935 Herman .Ff'a 51- Patented Nov. 23, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF FORMING A DRAFT PASSAGE IN THE END OF A CIGAR Herman Prager, Metairie, La.

1936, Serial No. 87,316

1 Claim.

This invention relates to the method of forming a draft passage in the end of a cigar and the present application is a division of my application Serial No. 45,335, filed October 16, 1935, now

6 issued as Patent No. 2,075,055.

It is customary for the smoker to cut off the tip of the cigar for the purpose of creating a draft passage but this method is not satisfactory, for the cigar is frequently crushed, the wrapper 10 broken, and cut made either too small or too large to produce the correct draft, and small particles of tobacco are frequently detached which get into the mouth.

It would be advantageous to have the draft passage formed in the cigar at the factory, but such methods as have been employed to carry out this intent, for one reason or another have not been successful.

The method constituting the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which the sole figure shows diagrammatically the application of the principles of the invention to a cigar. The invention proposes as its object a method for forming a draft passage in the cigar through displacement of the tobacco by means of a piercing tool forming an axial bore. Ordinarily tobacco is elastic and upon withdrawing the piercing tool the displaced tobacco mll spring back again and fill the bore vacated by the piercing tool. The present method therefore contemplates heating the piercing tool so that it dehydrates the tobacco which it displaces, destroying its elasticity and giving it a set. Referring now in detail to the drawing, the numeral I repre- 35 sents a cigar in juxta-position to a piercing tool 2, the object of which is to form the bore 3. The reversely aimed arrows 4 represent reciprocation of the tool in opposite directions while the reversely curved arrows 5 indicate reverse direc- 40 tions of oscillation. The candle 6 designates any means for heating the piercing tool.

Tobacco sticks somewhat to a heated piercing or displacing tool so that if the latter is withdrawn with an unmodified rectilinear motion it will pull some of the tobacco out into the draft passage and perhaps pull some of it out of the cigar. A rotary movement during withdrawal would, therefore, be indicated, but it has been 5 found that if the displacing tool be rotated in a single direction the tobacco will wind itself tightly around the tool and be pulled out of the cigar when the displacing tool is withdrawn.

The present invention, therefore, contem- 10 plates giving the displacing tool an oscillatory movement and ithas been found that if the tool is oscillated during the piercing as well as the withdrawing operation, the tobacco is compacted in the wall of the draft passage still further rigidi- 5 fying said wall and assuring the permanence of the draft passage. The oscillatory motion prevents winding, breaks any adhesions between the tobacco and tool, and allows the tool to withdraw without loosening the tobacco.

The method of the present invention, there- 20 fore, involves the following steps: displacing the tobacco by a piercing tool to form a bore, dehydrating the tobacco in the walls of the bore by heat to destroy its elasticity, and compacting the tobacco and breaking its adhesion to the piercing 25 tool by oscillating the latter both while it is penetrating and while it is being withdrawn.

What I claim as my invention is:

The method of forming a draft passage in a cigar comprising, forming a bore in the cigar by piercing it with a displacing tool, communicating heat to the tobacco which forms the wall of said bore while the displacing tool is in place for destroying the elasticity of the tobacco, and oscillating the displacing tool while it is being entered and withdrawn to compact the contiguous tobacco, and to prevent winding of the tobacco upon the displacing tool or other adhesions between the tobacco and said tool which would tend to pull tobacco out into said bore or out of the 40 cigar when the displacing tool is withdrawn.

HERMAN PRAGER. 

